Page 25 - Chinese Porcelain Vol II, Galland

INTRODUCTION. 275

which is of a white and a clear comes all from
shining sky-blue,
It is made in other but it is of a
King-te-ching. places, quite
different colour and fineness. In short (not to speak of the
other sort of earthenware made all over China, but to which
never the name of there are some
they give porcelain), pro-
vinces, as those of Kan-ton (Canton) and Fo-kyen, where they
make cannot be deceived therein, for
porcelain ; but strangers
that of Fo-kyen is as white as snow, but has no gloss, and is
not with various colours. The workmen of
painted King-te-
ching formerly carried thither all their materials, in hopes of
being considerable gainers, by reason of the great trade then
driven by the Europeans at A-mwi (Amoy), but they lost their
labour, for they could never make it there with success. The
who desired to know work-
Emperor Kang-hi, everything,caused
men in to be to and
porcelain brought Peking, everything proper
for the manufacture. They did their utmost to succeed, being
under the Prince's eye, and yet we are assured that their work
failed. It is possible the reasons of interest and policy had a
hand in the
miscarriage ; but however that be, King-te-ching
alone has the honour of all of the world with
supplying parts
porcelain ; even the Japanese come to China for it."
This well the state of affairs
may very represent correctly
during the Kang-he period, but there seems no doubt that
later on other manufactories worked more to the
up King-te-
chin level of and towards the end of the
quality, Keen-lung
period were able to supply porcelain suitable to the require-
ments of European traders.
It is known that of the china decorated at Canton
quantities
were .received from and in the finer
King-te-chin,* qualities
it is means of the of decoration that we have
entirely by style
to and discriminate between that in the north and
try painted
at Canton, while much of the china made and decorated at
King-te-chin was shipped from Canton, which further tends
to complicate the matter. There seems to have been on
the of the Cantonese a to
part tendency over-decorate, and
the we can for the most to the
pieces recognize part belong
enamelled class, the surface almost
being generally entirely
covered. As we go on, an effort will be made to point out the
few contained in this series that to have been
pieces appear
* "
Ancient Chinese Porcelain," p. 42.